Everybody enjoys seeing a cute pet! (Well, almost everybody, I think!) Whether the pet is a dog, a cat, a bird, or what have you. But for me, finding satisfaction in "interacting" or "petting" someone else pet is very different from actually owning one.
Take for instance a cute puppy pet. Gandang tingnan at himasin hangga't puppy pa. Hangga't kaya mo pa ung pambili ng puppy food niya masaya ka pa rin! But, wait till the puppy became an adult dog already! Madalas ng magsira ng mga gamit. Lakas ng umubos ng dog food! (Teka, magkano na nga ba ang per kilo ng dog food na branded ngayon?) Di rin biro ang magpaligo at maglinis ng dog house niya! Teka, nagkasakit pa gawa yata ng magpalit ng brand ng dog food niya! There's a Veterinary Doctor at the other town, patingnan natin! Wait, let's do some research first in the Internet. Baka me home-made solutions pa para maging masigla ulit ang pet dog (at ng medyo makatipid na rin sa gastos!) . Sorry, hindi talaga pwede ang trial-and-error baka lumala ang sakit niya, We better bring him to the veterinarian na. Good! My son's dog, LINUX, is now well again a day after the visit to the vet.! Pero teka, bakit ako yata ang abala at nag-aalala at hindi ang real pet owner? Oh, well, my son is always busy managing his business, he is not yet fully "pet- ready", natutuwa lang siya talaga na makakita ng mga cute pets. Well, maybe, the desire to own and take care of his own pet is there! Kaya nga I made this blog to sort of provide some advice to former pet-lovers turned pet owners:
1. Kung gusto niyong mag-alaga ng pet, una niyo i-prepare ang sarili niyo!
2. Condition yourself into being a responsible pet owner. Not just a pet admirer!
3. Do some research ahead of time. If it's a pet dog, check out the Internet for, say, how to care best for the preferred breed.
4. Get a good place in your yard where to put your pet where it will be comfortable.
5. Consider your pet as a new member of the family. So, treat it as one.
6. And lastly, be prepared for the "unexpected", (sometimes) not-budgeted contingency funding for your pet's perpetual maintenance. Estimated lifespan of a medium-sized dog, according to experts, is from 10 - 14 years. Total cost to maintain a dog pet through its entire lifespan is from $7,000 - $15,000. That's a lot of money! But, if you are a certified dog lover, it should be all worth it! Here's where most of the money are spent:
6.a. Dog food is the biggest consumable, but it is the easiest to compute!
6.b. Vitamins is a must, hence should also be already on your budget.
6.c. Veterinary consultation & hospitalization- this is where you should be prepared to stretch your wallet. Sometimes you just do not know how many times you will be going back & forth to the clinic if your pet do not get well after its first or second trip to the clinic. There's a nice article on how to save money if you want to be a serious pet owner: Reducing the Cost of Owning Pet. Please check it out
At present, we have four (4) pet dogs in the house. I originally owned just one, but I am actually taking care to all of them now. I don't mind though, I am pet-ready anyway! How about you?
Our latest pet dog, Linux, got sick when I first wrote the blog of getting "pet-ready". After a week of being worried, my son Richard (he is the real owner of the dog) and me got a sigh of relief when Linux started eating heartily again. We are very thankful to the veterinarian who took care of Linux. Two positive things resulted on pet dog Linux' getting sick. First, my son Richard is now very active in learning how to take of his dog seriously. (Before, it used to be who spend more time caring for the dog.) And second, everybody in the house now shows concern on their own individual pets! We have African love birds, goldfishes & dogs as our pets. These pets have different owners & I was the one who use to tend to them most of the time. Now, I have everyone helping me. Thank you Linux!
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